Jerry Falwell Dies at 73

As it turned out, he collapsed in his office.

“I shudder to think where the country would be right now if the religious right had not evolved,” he said when he stepped down as Moral Majority president in 1987.

Errr, you’d have a religious left that’s even stronger? I dunno.

Matt Foreman, executive director of National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, extended condolences to those close to Falwell, but added: “Unfortunately, we will always remember him as a founder and leader of America’s anti-gay industry, someone who exacerbated the nation’s appalling response to the onslaught of the AIDS epidemic, someone who demonized and vilified us for political gain and someone who used religion to divide rather than unite our nation.”

The 1980s marked the religious conservative movement’s high-water mark. In more recent years, Falwell had become a problematic figure for the GOP. His remarks a few days after Sept. 11, 2001, essentially blaming feminists, gays and liberals for bringing on the terrorist attacks, drew a rebuke from the White House, and he apologized.

That, pretty much, sums it up, doesn’t it?

In a statement, President Bush said he and First Lady Laura Bush were “deeply saddened” by the loss of a man who “cherished faith, family and freedom.”

“One of his lasting contributions was the establishment of Liberty University, where he taught young people to remain true to their convictions and rely upon God’s word throughout each stage of their lives,” Bush said.

Yeah, he cherished faith (his Christian fundamentalism), his family (blood relations and other Christians–mainly those who held his views), and freedom (but not for the queer community, women, liberals, or anyone who didn’t subscribe to his faith).

Some of you may be like, “Shells! You shouldn’t speak ill of the dead, even if you didn’t like the person!” Well, unfortunately, most of what I think of Falwell is ill. I do wish his family well, though.